Newly
appointed Bafana Bafana head coach Stuart Baxter says he is ready to cause an
upset against Nigeria when the two bitter rivals clash in a 2019 Africa Cup of
Nations (AFCON) qualifier next month.
South Africa
will be looking to break their long standing hoodoo and claim their first ever
competitive triumph over the Super Eagles when they lock horns away from home
on Saturday, June 10.
Despite not
getting sufficient time to prepare for the much anticipated battle, the
outgoing SuperSport United mentor believes that he will select a competitive
team to do the honours for the country.
"I am
chopped to be going into a group stage competition with Bafana Bafana,"
said Baxter, who will undertake his second spell as Bafana Bafana mentor.
"It
will be a big challenge to play against Nigeria away from home. I say so
because of the little time of preparations we have but I have embraced that and
I have gained strategies to use on Nigeria.
"By the
time we pick the squad to face them I hope the players will be more
competitive.
"I
won’t be defeated by Nigeria by the way, we can go there and surprise them.
We’ll go there and give them a good run for their money."
The last
time the two sides met was in the 2015 AFCON qualifiers at the newly built Uyo
stadium in Nigeria and the game ended in a 2-2 stalemate with Tokelo Rantie
grabbing a brace for Bafana Bafana under Shakes Mashaba’s reign.
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